The second of the public forums on the Regional Transportation Referendum will be held Thursday at 7pm at Lawrenceville's City Hall. Residents will have a chance to get important questions answered before they head to the polls on July 31st. Here are five stories and blogs you should read on the issue ahead of tonight's forum: 1. Are You Ready for Some TSPLOST? 2. GDOT Releases Updated TSPLOST Projections 3. Do You Feel Pressured to Support TSPLOST? 4. Vote for TSPLOST? Not a Chance 5. So Where Do You Stand on TSPLOST? If you can't make it to tonight's forum and would like to make …

  You can hear the sniffling and sneezing all over Lawrenceville. We're only two days into spring and allergy sufferers are ready to wave the white flag. The pollen count broke a record Monday at over 8,000. That record was shattered on Tuesday with a count of 9,369. And with only a slight chance of rain not coming until the weekend, meteorologists do not see any relief in the near future. So what's an allergy sufferer to do? Lawrenceville Patch talked to Allergist Dr. Thomas Chacko of Gwinnett Medical Center. He offered these 5 tips to help get allergy sufferers through the rough days ahead…

Hopefully you remembered to set your clocks back an hour last night, or your iPhone or Blackberry automatically updated itself. If not, then you were probably nice and early for church this morning or wondering why your favorite coffee shop wasn't open yet. When we fell back, we gained an hour. Here are some things you can do to make the most of those extra 60 minutes: 1) Set your clocks to the right time and change the batteries in your smoke detectors. If you don't have any fresh batteries, run down to Walgreens or Walmart and grab some extra 9Vs or AAs. 2) Pamper yourself. Treat yourself …

Summer officially rolled in at 1:16pm today. Here are 5 things you can do to celebrate the season: 1. Get some ice cream!  I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream! Chill out with a scoop or two (or three) of your favorite flavor.   2. Take a dip With a cloudless sky and temps in the 90's today is the perfect day to splash around in the pool.   3. Shop for a swimsuit Hey, I never said they were all FUN ideas! But you have to wear a swimsuit to get in the pool so why not find one that's fun and flatters your figure?   4. Get a tan Laying out in the sun covered in baby oil is not the …

There are just a handful of hours left before taxes are due. We had a few extra days to file as well. But if you're one to wait until the very last minute, here are some tips to help you make the midnight deadline. 1. Which Post Office is Open Late? All of the post offices in Gwinnett County have now closed. One post office in Atlanta, near Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport will remain open until 11:59pm. Your envelope(s) must be postmarked by 11:59pm in order for your returns to be considered filed by the deadline, so that means you can't just drop it in a drop box at the …

March 15th is known as the Ides of March. Today is the day Julius Caesar was betrayed and stabbed 23 times by the Roman Senate, including his close ally, Brutus.  Here's a list of 5 Things we compiled to commemorate this infamous day in history. 1. Caesar Salad Believe it or not, this salad is not named for Julius Caesar but for Caesar Cardini, the chef who created it. But the one time Roman Emperor may have enjoyed this dish as well. Both Panera Bread and Doc Green's have great Caesars.   2. Orange Julius Again, not actually named for Julius Caesar, but for the creator of the …

Today is March 14th. Or 3/14. Math lovers know this day as National Pi Day. Pi being equivalent to 3.14. Well, there are more numbers to it, but I'm a writer, not a mathematician. If you're like me and prefer pie over pi, here's a list of places that serve pie so you can celebrate National Pi Day. 1. Peachtree Cafe This cafe recently opened its doors. Peachtree is located right next to City Hall. We called and checked this morning and today they're featuring homemade Chocolate Banana Cream Pie and Lemon Meringue Pie.   2. Italian Pizza Pie Have a slice of pizza pie! Why not try their…

Gas prices in Lawrenceville are as high as $3.41 and may even go up by the time I finish typing the sentence. So what can one do? You still need to go to work, the grocery store and take the kids to soccer practice. We here at Patch have compiled a list of 5 things you can do to help give your wallet a break: 1. Just Drive 55 Going the speed limit can help you save significantly. According to fueleconomy.gov, going 65 instead of 60 mph can cost you an additional $0.24 to $0.78 per gallon for gas. Plus, going slower is safer. 2. Lighten Your Load An extra 100 pounds of junk in your trunk …

We're going to see some spring-like temperatures this weekend, so get out there and enjoy it! Here are five fun things going on in and around Lawrenceville: 1. Dream On The Revolve Tour makes a stop at the Arena at Gwinnett Center this weekend. It features high-energy performances while delivering an inspirational message to teen girls. Performances are tonight and Saturday afternoon. 2. Rev Up Your Engines SPEEDFEST 2011 is going on this weekend at Lanier National Speedway in Braselton. There's open practice today and the racing starts Saturday and runs through Sunday.  3. S-P-E-L-L The …

Looking for something to do this weekend? Here are five things you should check out either in Lawrenceville or just a short drive away: 1. Give Blood There are a couple blood drives going on this weekend. The Post Office downtown is hosting one Saturday and the First United Methodist Church is on Sunday. The need is especially great right now as several drives around the region were cancelled last week due to the snow storm and supplies at area hospitals, including Gwinnett Medical Center, are low. 2. Laugh til It Hurts! You have two places to go to tonight to get your laugh on. First, head …

The temperatures are rising and the ice is finally melting. More and more people are anxious to get out after being cooped-up for almost a week. Here are some options to help cure you of cabin fever: 1. Go to the Theater Sirens opens this weekend at the Aurora Theatre. It's first preview show was put on ice because of, well, the ice. But the show must go on. Sirens is a comedy and runs now through February 6th. 2. Have a Laugh Ralphie May will be appearing at The Performing Arts Center at the Gwinnett Center Saturday night. The standup comedian has been seen on a variety of late night talk …

Meteorologists are predicting the snow, ice and cold temperatures will stay around the City of Lawrenceville for a while. Here are some tips to help keep your four-legged friends safe and warm until we thaw out. Keep Your Dog on Its' Leash: Never let Fido roam free on snow and ice, especially during a snowstorm. Dogs can lose their sense of smell in the snow and easily get lost. According to the ASPCA, more dogs are lost in the winter than any other time. And always make sure your dog has its' ID tags. Wipe Down Dogs: Be sure to carefully and completely wipe your dog's legs and stomach after …

It's Day Two of "Snowpocalypse 2011." You and your children have watched every single Dora episode, built a snowman, and now the kids are even bored with the Wii. Now what? Here are five fun ideas to help pass the time until those kids are back in the classrooms: Snow Painting: Take some empty spray bottles, fill them with water and a couple drops of food coloring. Bundle up the kids and let them use the snowy sidewalks as a canvas. Put on a Puppet Show:  We all have mismatched socks. One gets lost in the dryer. Or maybe you got a hole in the heel. Use them to make puppets. You can also use …

There's plenty going on in and around Lawrenceville this weekend. Here are my picks for 5 Things to Do: 1. Cheer on your team Central Gwinnett, Archer and the Gwinnett Gladiators all have games on Friday. Grab your pompoms, get some face paint and yell, yell, yell! 2. Carry a tune The Singin' Bean in Downtown Lawrenceville offers family friendly karaoke Friday and Saturday. No alcohol is served, just coffee and other beverages. So belt out your favorite Barry Manilow tune... That is if you still have a voice left after screaming so much at the games mentioned above. 3. Send the kids to school…